Julia Roberts supports Save Our Soils ahead of ‘Celebrating Soil’

By the time you’ve read this, 9,378 m² of fertile soil has been destroyed. This is the message Julia Roberts is delivering to the world as she becomes the latest in a line of international VIP’s to call for action to protect our soils, many of whom will be speaking at the Celebrating Soil! Celebrating Life! Conference, 26-27 June in Amsterdam.

The Hollywood actress has become the newest face of the Save Our Soils initiative, following in the footsteps of several dedicated environmentalists including the Dalai Lama, Bishop Desmond Tutu, activist Vandana Shiva and conservationist Douglas Tompkins, IFOAM announced.

Many, along with Andre Leu, president of IFOAM – Organics International, will be presenting at the Celebrating Soil! Celebrating Life! Conference. Highlighting the significance of soils for our sustainable future, Andre Leu stated: “By building soil organic matter, we can make farming systems much more resilient and better adapted to climate extremes and climate change.

“We also know that in the process of doing so, we can sequester a significant amount of CO2 even to the point where we can start looking at reversing the impact of climate change.”

Welcoming the support of Julia Roberts, Organic Ambassador Volkert Engelsman, who initiated the Save Our Soils campaign said: “We want to support growers to develop sustainable farming practices and save soil fertility. Likewise, we want to encourage consumers to buy sustainably farmed organic food and be conscious of production methods.

“There can be no sustainability without transparency. Saving the world’s soils is essential not just for our wellbeing, but for the survival of future generations.”

IFOAM said it is proud to partner the Celebrating Soil! Celebrating Life! Conference, which takes place as part of the 2015 International Year of Soils, at Amsterdam’s Royal Tropical Institute.